Transcript of "March 2012 3-6 FA Newsletter"

1.
Newsletter 1 March 2012The Centaur Roll Call S W I F T A N D B O L D F r o m t h e C o m m a n d e r ’ s D e s k If you follow us on Face- form Families of the great book or you husband or things your Soldiers are wife is the talkative kind doing. Like all things you have seen the dedica- though there will be some I N S I D E T H I S I S S U E : tion your Centaurs have areas that could stand im- given to developing these provement and we wel- Importance of Army Families 2 critical core skills as we come and encourage your have been out for Table V, suggestions for making theAlpha Battery pushes on with training 3 VI, X, and XII exercises over Centaur Roll Call a world the past 5 months. Im class publication. Articles Bravo flexes their mus- cles at LFX 4 Swift and Bold! As we ap- proud to say that while we from our Families are en- proach the one year mark- have a ways to go we are couraged and welcomed, Birthdays & Anniversa- ries 5-6 ing our return from now capable of accomplish- please submit them to our Afghanistan we are fortu- ing our mission of providing FRSA, Kimberley WilliamsGolf Co keeps the Batter- ies going 7 nate enough to be able to indirect fires for the 1st for review. look another year in the Brigade Combat Team HHB conducts Warrior Responder Course 8 eye here in the United wherever the Nation calls In closing, Im incredibly States before our next us to serve. This is no proud to continue to serve "Climb to Glory". As all of small feat, we have young with your Soldiers, they are you know we are preparing SGTs and in some cases a fantastic group of Ameri- for our next deployment Staff Sergeants that had cans who are clearly proud and for this Artillery never fired a round, Im of the work they do. I am Battalion that means being proud to say that is no humbled on a daily basis by able to not only shoot but longer the case. their dedication to duty and to perform as maneuver to their country. We are the and in some cases it may Another area we have been best Battalion in the United call for training our Afghan focusing on is getting our States Army and we are counterparts. Either systems in place to prepare that way because you are in way we will remain flexible us for longer redeploy- it. Thanks for what you do and rest assured your sol- ments and upcoming future for your Families and your diers will get the training deployments. This newslet- Soldiers. they need to be successful ter is one of those systems in the mission they per- that we are bringing back LTC Oeschger form. on line as a means to in-

2.
P a g e 2 T h e C e n t a u r R o l l C a l l Fa m i l i e s E m p ow e r S o l d i e r sSwift and Bold! and enhance your knowl- Many Volunteers in thisThis month I would like to edge of the pending deploy- Battalion are here to edu-discuss the importance of ment. Keep in mind that cate and help you along thethe Military Family. Often every deployment is differ- way and we appreciatefamily members do not truly ent and adapting to this their commitment to theunderstand the significant change is key to your suc- CENTAUR family. I urge yourole they play in a success- cess as an Army Family. to please take advantage offul Military career. I person- FRGs were established to the programs offered toally have witnessed on nu- increase the resiliency of you. Some may just findmerous occasions over the the Unit, Soldiers, and their the experience a rewardinglast 24 years the confi- Families. They provide prac- one that will last a lifetime.dence and vigor a Soldier tical tools for adjusting to My door is always open andcan attain from the Military deployments and if you may ever have ques-strength of his or her Fam- separations and can also tions or concerns please doily. Many successful mis- enhance the well-being and not hesitate to let me know.sions can be attributed to esprit de corps within the Thank you for everythingthe dedication and under- unit. One of the goals of an you do.….standing of a Soldier’s Fam- FRG is to support the mis-ily. sion by providing support, CSM Thomas outreach, and information CENTAUR 7Our Family is about to ex- to Family members.perience our next deploy-ment in the upcomingyear… Being a Resilient We lc o m es t o th e 3 - 6FAArmy Family means know- Family!!ing how to prepare for andget through a deployment Alpha Battery Headquarters Batterysuccessfully. An important SSG Diaz PFC Walstonpart of supporting your Sol-dier is to prepare for a de- SGT Glass SGT Crutcherployment by knowing what 2LT Burke CSM Thomasto expect. Spouses and CPL Mays PFC PalkoFamily members who areengaged in learning about 1LT Niemergresources ahead of time Bravo Battery PFC Vasseurwill be emotionally and lo- SFC Bejar SGT Kellenbenzgistically better prepared. Becoming more involved in 2LT Dingbaum PV2 Alfonsoyour Family Readiness PV2 Cash CPT BecotteGroup (FRG) is one of thebest ways to understand

3.
N e w s l et t e r P a g e 3 Fa m i l i e s o f A l p h a b a t t e ry, your Soldiers have been full occupied training areas 10A support. I’m extremely proud throttle since coming off of and 10B and conducted pla- of what we have accom- block leave on 03 JAN 2012. toon level operations and fire plished as a Field Artillery The first day back, the battery mission processing. Over the Battery thus far and am look- immediately immersed itself course of the exercise, the ing forward to future opera- in rigorous preparations for platoons conducted multiple tions. This is truly a great the field. The 9th-12th of displacements, both day and organization with a depth of January, Alpha Battery night, while delivering timely great Soldiers and families, wasted no time in executing and accurate fires for 1-71 and it is a pleasure and privi- 8th Section “Ocho”, 2nd Platoon, Alpha it’s first field exercise of the CAV’s observers on OP5. The lege to be a part of. Battery 3-6 FA, led by SGT Michael Stratton, year with OPERATION ROCK battery shot a combined total fires a round from Panther DZ during the PRECIPICE, where the battery of 359 rounds over the four- Battalion Table XII Live Fire Exercise in occupied Training Area 8B day exercise without incident. Congratulations to the follow- January 2012. and conducted platoon col- Additionally, several Distin- ing NCOs and Soldiers on lective dry fire training over guished Visitors observed their recent promotions: four days. Upon returning, and participated in the bat- the battery had a week to tery’s live fire training and Morrow, Anthony – SSG recover it’s equipment while were impressed with the Smith, Brian – SSG simultaneously preparing for professionalism and Covert, Matthew – SGT the Battalion Table XII Live technical knowledge the Frechette, Kyle – SPC Fire Exercise, a feat in and of “Sons of Alpha” possess. Perez, Jimmy – PFC itself. From the 23rd-29th of Scott, Harold – PFC January, the battery again Bartley, William – PV2 deployed to the field, occu- The men of the “Rock” Bat- pied firing points on Panther tery significantly improved Drop Zone, and successfully their skill sets across the “Rock Solid!” 3rd Section, 1st Platoon, Alpha Battery 3-6 FA, fired 525 artillery rounds board in a short period of SPC Joshua Duffy (Gunner) operates the during platoon operations. time, greatly enhancing the -ROCK 6 Panoramic Telescope of a M119 105mm Upon completion, the battery capabilities and readiness of Howitzer during the Battalion Table XII Live Fire once again began preparing the unit. They put it all on Exercise in January 2012 while SSG Anthony Morrow (Section Chief) supervises to ensure safe for its next field training exer- the line, day in and day out operations. cise, OPERATION ROCK ICE- and consistently perform in HAMMER. It would be the austere conditions without first time the battery de- degradation or complaints. ployed to the field apart from The strength of our Soldiers the battalion to conduct a is a direct correlation of the live-fire exercise, but not strength of their families. without some key supporting The “Rock” couldn’t be what CPT Clint Hauger assets from HHB and Golf Alpha Battery it is today without the support Commander Company: Survey, MET, Ra- of it’s families, and the fami- dar, and Distro. From the 7th lies providing outstanding -10th of February, the battery T h e f i r s t s e r g e a n t ’ s c o r n e r I would like to start off with I 15 days. The Sons of Alpha I would also like to take have no idea what happened have successfully fired over the time to show recognition with winter; however, I have 700 safe and accurate artil- to PV2 Alobaidi who was rec- enough sense and have been lery rounds and conducted a ognized as the Brigade Sol- stationed here long enough Battery level live fire exercise, dier of the Quarter and repre- to still be weary of Old Man the first in the five years sented the battery and bat- Alpha Battery’s PFC Alobaidi receives an award from 1BCT Commander COL Stephen Winter at Fort Drum. With since I have been in the Bat- talion at the Division Soldier Michael in recognition for winning the that said, I cannot tell you talion. Continue to support of Quarter Board placing Brigade Soldier of the Quarter Board. how proud I am of the Sol- your Soldiers as we continue second. A job well done! diers in Alpha Battery. Since to get back to the basics of coming off Christmas Block field artillery and remember -ROCK 7 Leave approximately 45 days the first word in Field Artillery ago, we have successfully is FIELD! gone to the field for a total of

4.
P a g e 4 T h e C e n t a u r R o l l C a l l Br avo batt ery 16th of February 29 – May 11), the which focused on Battery will be pro- the same tasks viding indirect fire “...thanks to all from the January support to Infantry Field Exercise in an and Cavalry Battal- the family attempt to increase ions throughout the familiarity with Pla- BCT as they maneu- members who toon level opera- ver throughout the tions and to in- battlefield and con- continue to2012 has started off as a promis- crease the speed at which the duct operations oning year for the Soldiers of Bravo howitzer sections and FDCs oper- objective areas. The support this fineBattery as they continue to im- ate. Supported by the forward ob- Battery will also es-prove their skills as artillerymen in servers from 1-87 Infantry, the tablish Platoon level organization…”support of 1BCT, 10th Mountain Battery’s performance was out- firebase in order toDivision. Prior to block leave, how- standing. The Battery fired over incorporate lessonsitzer sections along with fire direc- 350 rounds safely and accurately learned during thetion centers (FDCs) completed and increased both the speed and Battery LFX on February 13th-16ththeir section level qualifications proficiency in which they con- and to continue improving thefor the first time in over two years. ducted fire missions from January. skills required to defend an artil-With the start of the New Year, the The Battery also executed the con- lery position area.Battery progressed to conducting struction of a Platoon FirebasePlatoon level training in prepara- during this exercise which is a skill I am continually impressed withtion for the Battalion’s Platoon that an overwhelming majority of the work that our Soldiers are do-Live Fire Qualification from the the Battery has not executed previ- ing on a day to day basis as they23rd-29th of January. The Battery ously. The construction process continue to improve skills that theperformed superbly despite ad- was a great learning experience Battalion has not focused on inverse weather conditions firing for all involved and turned out to over two years due to deploymentover 500 rounds safely and accu- be a great success in the end. Sol- schedules. The Soldiers in Bravorately and qualifying both firing diers were able to see the practice Battery are a motivated and dedi-Platoons and FDCs. The Battery put into action and see where they cated group of professionals thatwas commended on its profession- need to improve for the next at- are among the best that I havealism and proficiency by the Dep- tempt. had the pleasure of working withuty Commanding General of Op- during my career in the Army. I amerations COL (P) Clarke during In the coming months, the Battery fully confident that this Battery willtheir execution of this exercise. will continue to increase its artil- become among the best in this lery proficiency as it participates in fine Division and that the SoldiersThe Battery conducted an internal Battalion and Brigade level live fire will be more than capable to ac-Live Fire Exercise from the 13th- exercises. The first of these will be complish any mission that they are a Battalion exercise from tasked with in the future. I send the 5th-9th of March where my thanks to all the family mem- Platoons will be tested on bers who continue to support this their ability to maneuver fine organization and look forward across the battlefield and to the upcoming months of train- provide fire support in the ing and other social functions with process. Platoons will also the Bravo Battery family. be evaluated on their ability to evacuate casualties, re- Ryan W. Graf act to enemy attacks and CDR, B/3-6 FA many other skills that are Bulls Deep! required when operating in a deployed environment. During the BCT Fire SupportSGT Roy and SGT Cudal conducting a direct fire mission Certification Exercise (Aprilon January 26 2012.

7.
N e w s l et t e r P a g e 7 G O L F C O M P A N Y SGT Gary Tarter (right) and PFC Kevin Hirons perform maintenance on a heater during the January Table XII Gunnery. This year has already been ercise was the opportunity a busy one for Golf Com- to conduct field feeding pany! We have deployed operations for the first from March to the field in support of time in nearly two years. 05-10. The the Battalion during Janu- The Soldiers in the field rest of the ary’s Table XII Gunnery. feeding section worked month of The Soldiers performed continuously day and March will extremely well in less than night to prepare hot morn- have the Com- ideal weather conditions ing and evening meals pany involved providing continuous logis- that were outstanding and in various pla- tical support. The Distribu- enjoyed by everyone in the toon level SSG Randy Randolph (right) checks his uniform as SGT Matthew th tion Platoon logged over Battalion. training events Howard (center) Day Ball. with 1LT Nathan Carpenter at the 10 BSB Valentine’s converses 11,000 miles on the road preparing for In February, the Company in the training areas dur- the upcoming field exer- supported the firing Bat- ing the six day exercise cise in April. The Company teries during their respec- delivering hot meals, just welcomed back WO1 tive live fire exercises. We 6,500 gallons of fuel, and Clyde Elliott from Warrant also participated in small over 1,200 ammunition Officer Basic Course and arms weapons qualifica- rounds to the firing batter- are excited that two of our tion, Warrior First Re- ies. The maintenance pla- Guardian Soldiers, SSG sponder training, and the toon provided direct main- Nickesha Hibbert and SPC Battalion’s “Commo Acad- tenance support to the Markeeshia Neal, were emy” conducted by the Battalion’s wheeled vehi- selected to the Fort Drum Battalion S6. Some mem- cles, generators, and how- Culinary Arts Team and bers of the Company at- itzers. The vehicle recov- will be participating in the tended the 10th Brigade ery team was also called 37th Annual Military Culi- Support Battalion’s Valen- upon several times to re- nary Arts Competition in tine’s Day Ball held at The cover vehicles that be- Fort Lee, Virginia from Commons and enjoyed a came stuck as a result of February 24 thru March 9. Background Picture: great night of dinner and Distribution Platoon, Golf Company, loads a flat rack with the harsh driving condi- dancing. We are currently ammunition residue on the back of a Load Handling System (LHS) tions. The highlight for the in preparation for the Bat- ~Guardian 6~ on the final day of the January Table XII Gunnery. Guardians during this ex- talion’s Table XII Gunnery

8.
P a g e 8 T h e C e n t a u r R o l l C a l l H H B W a r r i o r f i r s t r e s p o n d e r c o u r s e ( F e b r u a r y 2 0 1 2 ) this environment at the Fort Drum nel since the summer. The hard Medical Simulation Training Facil- work and full participation will con- ity. This state-of-the-art facility in- tinue until this end state is cludes a litter obstacle course to achieved simulate casualty evacuation and By: SGT Benjamin Hackler a casualty “battle environment” that allows Soldiers to practice the skills they learned on life-likeFrom February 7th to the 10th, 3-6 “casualties.”FA Soldiers took part in Warrior Soldiers are required to attend thisFirst Responder Training. This in- course on a yearly basis, as part oftensive, 40 hour course involves an Army-wide campaign to de-training Soldiers on advanced first crease the time a battle casualtyaid techniques that can save a is treated for life-threatening inju-casualty’s life out on the battle- ries and evacuated from a hostilefield and during training missions. environment to a Medical treat-The focus is on treating the top ment Facility. The 3-6 FA medicsthree casualty producing injuries have adopted their own approachin a wartime environment: life- to this by providing real-life handsthreatening arterial bleeding, air- on training that has been provenway blockage, and open chest to work in their recent deploymentwounds. Soldiers must pass an to Afghanistan. There is also an m the “head man”extensive, informational and sta- lift the casu alty fro extensive knowledge base within ait orders to leader Students aw the litter teamtistic-based knowledge test, as * The head man is the platoon ranging from recentwell as a rigorous hands-on sce- experiences in Afghanistan, highlynario that simulates treating a trained medics pursuing highercasualty in a stress-induced envi- education in the medical field, andronment. The instructors from other medics who have had dutyHHB, 4th platoon medics, got assignments at Medical treatment“inside the heads” of the partici- facilities and other line units. 3-6pants and effectively portrayed FA is currently working towards training 100% of their personnel and has trained over 100 person- One o f th level w e litter team hile en s attem * for s te pt to k afety re ring the “riv eep th asons er o bs e casu , no w tacle” alty ater is used d uring w inter of the sualty out keep the ca k. ad carry is used to e chan ce of shocAn overhe increase th sualty canwater . A wet ca SPC Meneses and PFC Elwood act as OPFOR for an upcoming attack on the students